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Full photo credits will be given upon publication, ISBN 962-361-623-6 printed in Hong Kong,he history of the Celtic warrior spans 3,000 years — a remarkably long military tradition, In comparison, the history of the Roman soldier covers barely one thousand years, and that of the Medieval knight is just 500 years. That a consistent collection of traits should survive so long and be identifiable even today is a ‘wonder in itself. Take for example two descriptions of Celtic warriors. The first: When they] 100k to their broadswords, what a havoc they made! They drove everything belore them, and walls could not resist their fury” The second: ‘They sing as they advance into baitle, they yell and leap in the air, clashing. their weapons against their shields We have leamed that if you can bear up to their first onslaught that initial charge of blind passion, then their limbs will grow weary * Both observations. describe fearless. warriors. who _embrac close combat, charging with blades in their hands, but the descriptions are separated by 2,000 years. The first refers. 10 Scottish Highlanders in Canada at the battle for Quebec in 1757: the second describes Celtic warriors in Asia in 189 BC. This enduring reputation for ferocity and fearlessness is impressive, but surely one must wonder if not all warriors in a combat situation are full of courage and action? The answer is, of course, yes, but based on chronicles spanning several centuries, the fact remains that the Celts took this one step further, thus guaranteeing. tor themselves a ranking position as mercenaries. that would. endure throughout the ancient world and Jong afterwards. They seem to have been particularly keen on Introduction fighting, it being a central part of their culture, but to this they added an exira dimension that can only be termed ‘madness’ It is said that in their earliest Incaration the Celts fought completely naked except for a chain that secured a sword around their waists. They were notorious for the atrocities. they committed against both civilians and soldiers, and they had a penchant for collecting enemy heads, In marble sculptures commissioned by a Greek king in the 3rd century BC, Celtic warriors are represented as being naked except for the ‘tore’ (a metal neck ‘omament) around their necks and preferring to kill themselves when ‘comered rather than submit In later Celtic titerature, the battle ‘madness’ of the Celtic warrior is described as a transformation from a man into a monster, in ‘The Tain, the hero Cuchulainn is described thus at the beginning of a battle: ‘A spasm tore through him. It distorted him, made him a monstrous thing. Every bone and organ shook like a irce in a storm, His insides made a twist within his skin, His shins filled with the bulging muscles of his calves. Balls of sinew as big as a warriors fist pumped up his body. His head swelled and throbbed, Veins dilated. Suddenly, he gulped one eye deep into his head so not even a wild crane could pull it out from his skull, The skin of his cheeks then peeled back from his jaws to reveal the grisile and bone of his gullet, His jaws crashed together and foam oozed up out of his throat, His hair twisted ane bristled like a red. thombush.’ In this passage, the artist is coming to terms with the temible anger that seizes a man in battle and transforms him into a_ raging animal. At the end of the battle sequence. same hero parades before his people, but this time he is a handsome man who reassures them with his good looks that he Is at peace 1 was this fury that the 5 and Romans wished to hamess in battle, andl it was this spirit, centuries. later, that the Duke of Wellington expected from his Irish and Scots soldiers when they blasted one volley of musket fire and then set out with fixed the bayonets in nothing less than an old Celtic charge. The Celts themselves were immensely proud of their tightingg skills. This pride Is reflected not only inthe ornamentation of their weapons and armor, but also in the biggest and the very smallest items in theit world, They were especially fine cavalrymen, a relic perhaps of their original homeland on the Eurasian steppe, and this horsemanship helped them achieve their early domination of western and northem Europe. in Britain, on the hillsides of their domains in southern England, they carved giant white horses ‘out of the chalk soil so that none of the surviving aboriginal inhabitants. would be in doubt about who now ruled this land Similarly, when the time came to cast tiny coins to help them carry ‘out their extensive trade, the Celts embellished them with images of chariots and_horses, abstracted down to the simple elements of bulging legs and flying cloaks to represent the speed and dynamism of these martial People. tn this book, the following marvelous. paintings by Angus. McBride continue this visual heritage of Celtic pride and ferocity and help to explain some of their immense history beautifulCelts on shore of Lake Hallstatt, second half of 6th century BC [lista s @ vilage near Salzburg in Austia. and the ancient [Cetic burial ploces discovered there in the 19th century have, ‘given their name to this eatlles! period of Celtic domination in Europe, which lasted trom the 71h to early Sih centuries BC. The name ofthe vilage. ike many other European sites, such as Holle ‘and Haein, indicates the presence of a salt mine and the Importance this played in prehistoric trading. Salt wos a great s0UrCe of wealth to the prehistoric warlord and his community. It preserved food, made It toste better, and could be traded across Europe for other goods. The impressive preservative quality of the mineral wos cleotly demonstrated when the body of c dead salt miner, after being excavated trom an old collapsed tunnel, showed lite race of decay. The Celtic warriors of central Europe grew rich through the sat trode, ond thelr power and influence expanded ftom the Danube ‘ong the Rhine Into France and southem Germany. Bronze, made of easily combined tin and copper, was the cominant ‘metal in the early part of this period, being superseded by the locally available lon that added to Celtic wealth. Farming wos fully developed, but raiding was regularly carried out, This brought In Adattional livestock, as well as slaves, which could be traded {along with salt and iron) to the sophisticated cultures of italy and ‘Greece 0 the south, providing the Celts with wine and luxury {900d It was on era of expansion for the Celts, one in which thelr ‘martial culture had ite serious oppostion, and ihey soon came to dominate much of westem Europe, though thelr constant intertibal feuding prevented them ftom forming any kind of ‘organized empire. The warrior in the pointing reflect the attiuence of Cottic ‘warlords ang thelr followers during this period. Bronze ond iron are ‘combined for botn decoration and strengthening weapons. The figure on the left wears @ crested, domed brorae helmet that Is typical of the eatlest Cetic helmets found In central Europe, such {5 near Passau In Bavaria, and which ate associated with the Umfield culture of about 1000 BC. This type of helmet changed litle ever subsequent centuries and influenced other cultures such {5 the Etruscans, He ako wears a bronze breastplate decorated with tepousse studs, His bronze sword hos the ‘sloping shoulders’ Crossquard typical of all Cettic swords In ths early period. Early Clossicol writers describe the woolen clothes of the Celts os "checkered oF “mull:colored’ ond this has been interpreted as a (Plate 1) form of tartan, A fur ‘sporran’ further foreshadows Getic cultures tocome, The Cental warlord figure wears a bronze band of armor ‘round his waist. Wide battle belts are often featured in Calic myth, as ore battle oprons, Certainiy ita development similar to the belt hangings wom by the Roman soldiers of the early imperial ppetiod, but here it s very much a decorative object thot serves Ite protective purpose. His sword hos an iron blade that swells out towads the tip. Halstatt swords could be vary big and long, suggesting they were mainly used as slashing weapons. largely from horseback of chariots. His bronze dagger Baars ahi with two rounded hams, typical of ‘antennae’ decorations of the petiod, The wartior on the right carries @ boar standard, a tomar ‘emblem throughout the ancient Celtic period, and his iron helmet bears feather wings. Animal myths featured strongly in Calc legend and clearly some association with the powers of animols is intended here. Leacing warriors wete believed to transform from theic human form into that of a monster that possessed animalistic Powers os 0 result of a bate rage. This beef was also found in later cultures such os that of the Vikings. There is a0 a long tradition of feathers being woin by hunter wortors In eastem Europe. culminating in the Polth Winged Hussars of the 17th and ath centuries. The wartlor on the right also weors @ padded tunic decorated with brorge studs, and o hexagonal shield rests against Fis legs. Long body shiolds ore thought to have been inspired by early Haan examples.Celts on shore of Lake Neuch: rst half of 5th century BC Tene means “the shallows’, and it was in the shallow part of Lake Neuchatel in Switzerland that Celtic warriors made “offerings to the gods in the shape of swords and other weapons, (Human skeletons have aso been found, suggesting perhaps that he gods wanted human sacrifices as wel. Between 1906 and. 1917, many of these objects were uncovered, giving the name of La Téne to the period of Cetic activity trom the 6th to the Ist centuries BC. The main difference between the Celts of this period and those of the earlier Halstatt era is a change in thelr burial ites, Warlords were now buried in light two-wheeled chariots rather than heavy four-wheeled wagons. The use of chariotsis somewhat ofc puzzle in Celie wartare, The terrain of central Europe is not suited for chariot warfare os practiced in the ancient Middle East when lines of chariots would be used fo breck masses of foot soldiers, with archers and light infantry using them as mobile laforms. Caesar describes them toking part in battie, but more {as demonstrations of mittary prowess in the prelude to contact, with chariot teams dsmounting to fight It ako seems likely that Cchoriots were used by leading wariors and warlords in a similar mannet to that of the heroic warriors of Homeric Greece, who would use them for a grand aval on the battiefield but would ismount fo fight, orn the case of the Celts, mount thelr horses to fight. These chariots were then used at the end of the conflict for either @ speedy pusult of a defeated enemy or a rapid fight CCuchulainn, ancient ish hero of The Tain, used « chariot covered with spies and barbs to burst upon his enemies like a thunderstorm. The Celtic warrior in the painting are armed with weapons similar to those found in Lake Neuchatel, including broad- bladed spears ond long. iron slashing swords. Bronze body armor anc helmets are worn alongside large oval shields made of oak planks reinforced with a central wooden spine and bronze or iron bosses The remains of such shields have been found in the shallows of the lake the warriors gaze upen (perhaps they are considering what sactiices to make prior fo a battle). While the bronze armor worn, by early Celts s thought to have been influenced by southem cutures such as the Mycenean Greeks, the Romans credited the Cetts with the invention of mall armor. ron rings were fiked together to form an interlocking tunic, with extra layers of mall secured across the shoulders fo reinforce it and protect it from the (Plate 2) downward blows of swords. Examples of Celtic mail are very rare, ‘and itis only through the Romans, who copied its use widely, that the Celtic ofigin for this breakthrough in armor can be sustained. ‘Armed ith song iton swotcs ond spears, La Tene Celts swept ‘across Europe, supplanting thelr own ecrer cultures and taking by storm almost every comer of the ancient Mediterranean word. They ode into Spain, Italy, and Greece and even passed into Aso, where they estoblshad the Calc state of Galatia in present-day Turkey, Celts continued westward and ako took control of France, Bitain, and Iretand, devastating the aboriginal inhabitants with their superior miltary technology and use of horses. The stage was Row set for their confict with the only other miliary culture that matched them for ferocity and efficiency—ihe armies of Rome.Hillfort in central Europe, second half of 5th century BC forts were the centers of power of the great Catic bes ond, {heir worrlers, Exting in western Europe before the arrival of the Celts, they nevertheless made these awesome defensive ‘positions very much thelr own. The building of hilforts accelerated ‘ond the fortiications became mote complex. To simple ramparts of earth and wood were added facing walls of sheer stone, the tubbie infling belng braced with cros-timbers. On top of this wore placed timber palisacies with walkways and platforms from which they could fight, Also, towers were located at regular intervals, Sometimes, whether by accident or intentionally. the wood and rubble Intetior of the ramparts would be set on fre. This resulted in € kind of vitiication of the stone by which it fused into one solic mass, The biggest hilforts had several ramparts and palsades finging the community inside with.c complex entrance of ‘gateways cut through the earth mounds. These were sometimes protected by addtional flanking guard chambers. wooden bridges overhead, or outworks to prevent a direct attack on the gote, ih Bitan, the most Impressive surviving ron Age hilfor, which is now called Maiden Catt, slacated near Dorchester. A.47-acre ste defended by three massive oval ramparts, Iis history began 5.000 years ago os @ Neolithic camp. As the Centuries passed, more ond more earth was dug UP ond pled into ramparts. The hilfort reached its present giant state in the fist century BC when the Celtic frbe of the Durotiiges occupied it. A hundred years later, the Romans invaded Biitain ond the Second Augustan, Legion under Vespasion assaulted it. A tremendous battle folowed, and the remains of weapons and burnt timbers have ‘been uncovered there. Many skeletons, which have ako been Unearthed. reveal bones cut with swords and. in one case, ‘backbone with an arrowhead inserted init The most fomous Cetc hilfort, however, must be that of Alesia rear Dijon in central Fronce. It was here in §2 BC that Coesar ‘confronted Verchigetotx, the great Gallic warlord. Alesia was an impregnable hilfort on a plateau above the countryside, surrounded on three sides by deep ravines with rivers running through them. Wooden palsades on top of earth mounds completed the defense. Cassar could see It would be impossible fo take this awesome fortress by assoul. Instead, he decided on a slege, but Vercingetorix could call upon ather Cetic tribes to suppor him and lead counterattacks, crushing the Romans (Plate 3) between two forces, Therefore, Caesar embarked on a massive ‘building project of his own, erecting one ting of fortfications ‘eieyen miles long aimed at Vercingetorix and another bigger ring (of fortifications to protect himself agoinst any relief force. With ths in place, Caesar settled into @ siege. Though Cettic forces came fo Vercingetom’s aide. Caesar detected them piece by piece Unf eventually the Gallic warlord was forced to concede defect. With this ond, Caesar nad effectively conquered Celtic France Thus, Celtic hilforts symbolized the power of the Celts but also proved thek eventual downtol, The senior wariors depicted in this painting wear typical ars ‘and armor of the La Tene peried. The central chieftain wears ‘eronze cone helmet similar to that found In Bert In Mame in France. I features an opening for a plume at the top and a sight ‘neckguard ot the recr. His scabbard is attached by an iron chain Ike those found in Champagne in France. The chieftain on the far tight wears decorative brooches fo secure his cloak. Typical of La Tene metalwork, they could be either cut-out metal, inlaid with enamel, or gided. Aside from native-made decoration, the Colts ‘ko had access 10 Greek oF Latin objects, or some from even further atield ke those made by the steppe peoples. through their extensive trade networks. The Celts favored plumes and cress for their metal helmets, but they also wore helmets made of softer ‘materiats, such os leather, which have not sunvved,Celts attack Etruscans, northern Ital 10 Celts were at the peak of thelr power in central Europe in the ath century BC, and their wartiots were hungry for conquests. One potential area thot attracted theirinterest wos the fich agricutural land beyond the Alps in northern Maly that wos watered by the Po tive, But this agion was held by the Etruscans. The Etruscons themselves were a martial race who had expanded over much of Italy, attacking the Greek settlements in the south ‘and adopting many aspects of Greek warfare. Cattic penetration ‘of northern italy had begun peaceably os trade giew between the two cultures, but by the early 4th century their interest had tuned into raiding, and then full-scale invasion, The Insubres grabbed terrtory in Lombardy where the town of Melpum, near Milan, fell fo them around 396 BC. The Boll drove further into lay, ging their name fo Bononie, now known os Bologna. The Etruscan settlement of Marzabotto was sacked, and Inits cometery have been founditon swords typical of the La Tene period. Fekina held out unt 350 BC when i 100 fel ter a sruggie between its Etruscan defenders ond the Celtic raiders Commemorcted on a tombstone, this battle is depicted os combat between Etruscars on horseback dressed In Greek foshion against naked Celts on foot, who are armed with swords ‘and large oval shields. By the end of the century, Efuscan power nod been shattered in northem italy. ond the region became: known in Latin as Cisalpine Gaul. But the Celts had not finished, Ther warriors rode even further south fo confront the Romans, who were not yet & major miltary power. At Alia, ¢ Roman army wos ‘overwhelmed by the wild charge of a band of Celts. With thelr fotmations broken up, the Romans found themselves outclassed by the bigger songer Celts, whose long swords oulreached thet short stabbing blades. Folowing the collapse of the Romian force, the Celts advanced on Rome and sacked the clly. The Celt leader, Brennus. demanded his weight in gold. It was on outrage the Romans would naver forgat or forgive, The Romans learned much trom the Colts and transformed ‘thei warfare as a result. They adopted Celtic mall armor, oval shlelds and Celtic helmet types, such as the peaked cools They learned to weaken the Celtic charge with a volley of javelins and then use their shields fo take the full weight of the Celtic siashing swords, while they stabbed at their enemies’ guts. Eventually, o hundred years later, the Romans turned the tables on the Cells ‘and invaded northern italy. In one confrontation, a Roman ao: BC late 4th centui (Plate 4) {general was challenged to single combat by the leader of the insures, @ traditional Cac form of heroic warfare, The Roman {general rode forward into the kiling zone between the two ‘asiembled armies. Vitdomons. the north Italian Celtic leader, bellowed that he had been born from the waters of the Rhine and ‘would make quick work of the Roman invader. He kicked his horse, info action and hurled his spear at the Roman who threw his Javelin as the Celt charged towards him. Both spears missed their targets. ond the two warlords clashed with sword and shield, each side cheering ther leader on, but the duel came fo a sudden end, The Roman's sword slashed the Cet’ throat, and his bent, golden tore fel to the ground. By 226 BC, at the battle of Telamon. the last Independent Celtic tbe in northern italy had been defeated, and the region became part of the emerging Roman Empire, The Celtic warriors in the painting wear La Téne-styie helmets ‘ond shields. The leading wartior holds an iron sword with {anthropomorphic hit similar to those found in France (the sword ‘pornme| is formed in the shape of @ man’s head. his arms up in the {it and his legs spread to form the curved crossquard). The second warrior holds the head of a decapitated Etruscan. Headhunting was a fundamental part of Celtic trophy gathering in wor os they ‘eleved a man’s spit resided in his head. Celtic warriors woud, {90 03 far as removing the heads from thet sian leaders to prevent them from being captured ond mutilated by the enemy,Celtic raid on northern Greece, first half of 3rd century BC Tr2.stegts coiled he Cetts sto. ond he grees! Sook ot them all, Alexander the Great, was inrigued by this barbarian race fving fo the north of his homeland of Macedonia, He {questioned a Catic envoy to his court, asking him what he feared. ‘Most, expecting him to say ‘You, my lord.” Instead, the proud Celt ‘answered honestly. "We fear only that the sy fol! and crush us, that the earth open and swallow us, that the sea fis ond ‘overwhelm us.” Oterwise, they feared nothing of no one, Alexander was Insuited. His great war machine would soon devastate the Persian Empire ond he would become the greatest conqueror the ancient world had known. What did these Insignificant barbarians know? He controliad Nis rage and Concentrated his considerable force on the Greeks to the south of him ond on Asia to the east. This was a mistake. Some fity years later these insignificant barbarians would descend on Greece, kil ‘8 Macedonian king, and ravage the classical world Tho Colts caught the Greeks at c weak time in their history Following the death of Alexander, the Macedonian Empite had broken up and the Gieck states were divided once again. Brennos, the leader of the Celtic war party that crossed the Danube, told his warriors of the riches that awaited them in the offluent Greek towns where temples were piled high with gold and siver offerings to the gods. It was the summer of 279 BC when the faiding Celts followed the traditional path into Greece, using passes through the mountainous terttory. The most famous of al these passes was that at Thermopylae where two centuries ectior the Spartans had fought a bitter last stand against the invading: Persons. Now another Greek army stood ready fo take on the latest invaders, The Athenian Calippos commanded around 2500 men, ‘mainly foot soldiers fighting in the usual Hoplite manner. The Celts were not an unknown power to the Greeks, having served oF ‘mercenaries in thelr Intercity wors. As such they were highly regarded, ond even feared. Aristotle puts hs finger on thelr porticular fighting character: ‘We have no word for the man who 's excessively fearless: pethaps one may call such @ mon med, or bereft of feeling. who fears nothing. nelther earthquakes nor ‘waves, os they say of the Celts’ This Battle madness would later bbe interpreted by the Celts themselves os a transformation of the human frame into some kind of animal monster, lasting as long as the trauma of battle lasted and scaring thetr own side as much as (Plate 5) the enemy. Brennos is said to have led an army 200,000 strong, bul this is typical of Greek chroniclers who always overestimated the so of borbatian armies. In realty. a ralding amy would be no larger ‘thon few thousand noremen, with addtional people comprising comp followers and prisoners, The Greeks tied to hinder the Cettic advance by destroying bridges along the river Spercheius. Brennos responded by sending warrior across the ‘swift waters who used thelr long shield os rats. Forcing the local population to rebuild the bridges. the Celts continued across the tiver. But being intent on plundering the local region, they were siow fo advance to bate. In the meantime, the Greeks gathered. Their resistance had been stifened by wid rumors of attocttes, including cannibaism. committed by the Celts. The battle began Ct sunrise with the Greeks having an advantage becouse of the rough tertain. The Colts could not deploy their horsemen to Grect ftfect, and the Greeks fought in close order with spears and shields. Nevertheless, the Celis attacked with characterisic {disregard for their own Ives, puting spears ftom thelr own bodies ‘and hurling them back at the Greeks. A separate action wos fought near the pass aiong the coastal marsh where the Greeks had rowed their tiremes. There the Greeks pelted the Celts with ‘atows and projectiles from slingshots. Following the day's fighting, which produced mony dead but no clear winner, the Celts withdrew 10 assess thet situation, ‘A weok later, Brennos sent some of his horsemen to raid the neighboring teritory of Astolia, This caused discord in the Greek ranks at Thermopylae because some of the Greeks were trom ‘Aetola and coud not stand by while their forms and families were terrorized by the Celts. The Aetolan departure weakened the Greek army’ Next, Brennos gained the support of local herdsmen, who were happy to get the Celts out of their own land and into someone else's teritory. They lead the Celts through secret paths ‘round Thermopylae. ond soon the Greek army wos surrounded, Under the cover of a morning mist, the Celts charged the Greeks, forcing them 1o fight a desperate retreat to thelr ships. Hurling themselves into the galleys, the Greeks were lucky 10 avoid ‘annihilation. Brennos was now in possession of Thermopyioe, and the rest of Greece awatted his next move,Brennos sacks Del, faving conquered the main Greek amy of resistance at {Thetmopyice, Brennos wanted his prize—a prize meosured in {901d and aver. His warriors had also been promised riches, and Unless he delivered It they would begin to wander off in their own War packs looking for loct. To keep his Celtic army together, Brennos ordered them to march south through the gorges of Pamnassos to Delphi, Situated on the southen slopes of Mount Painassos. Delphi was the heart of the Greek universe. tt was where the sky gods of the ancient Greek invaders, led by Apolo, ad slain he Python god of the prehistoric earth worshippers. Now It was the shrine of the sun god Apollo, and a town had grown ‘round It, one fich with the donations of worshippers. The temple Itself was ful of treasures gathered over the centuties as toutes 1o the gods. it was a worthy prize, but the god Apollo would not relinquish it easly. When word of the Celtic advance reached Delphi. iis people demanded a message from the priestess of the temple. Through her the god Apoto sai: I will defend what fs mine’. Eattler he hod predicted ths combat: "There wil come fo us in the future o struggle we all wage together. when, rasing the barbaric sword ‘and Cette wor latter-day Titans will rush upon us ike snow from the very far West." And the god was as good os his word. As the Celts ‘approached the temple through the mountain passes, the ground ‘began fo shake, Rocks roled down from the cis and crushed the warrior. The sky darkened and lightening veined the sky. Fireballs bust out from the clouds and consumed some of the Celts, Snow ‘ond frost klled mony of the wounded, Even the ghosts of former Greek heroes were said to have made an oppearance. Despite the fearless nature of the Celts, these supernatural events were the things they feared most. Nevertheless, according to the Greek hroniciess, the Celts pressed on, for thelr hunger for treasure was greater than their fear of Apollo. It was now up fo the couple of thousand Greek warriors defending the temple fo stop the Celts, Brennos was in no mood for compromise. His warriors swept aside the Greek soldiers, murdered the sacred priestess, and looted ‘both the town and the temple. The Greek world was outraged by this act. Its emembered in the classical world as one of the worst atrocities committed by ‘barbarians from the north. For Brennos it was a great coup. Much of the treasure found its way back into the Celtic world north ang \west of the Danube. Some was even donated to their own gods first half of 3rd century BC (Plate 6) in the sacred lake at Toulouse. But Brennos had to pay a price for this triumph. On the tong jouney back, the outraged Greeks Continued to attack the Celts, huring arrows and stones at them from the tops of mountain passes. One night a panic seized the Cells and they ended up king many of thal own wartors Brennos was wounded in one of these attacks ond he later died. It was said that the god Apollo had finally enacted his revenge. The painting shows Brennos at the height of his umpn on the: stops of the temple ot Delphi, His wannlors carry away the socred treasure, but all Ground ther a stot rages, expressing the anger of the violated god. Brennos wears o mall shirt based on that depicted in later Roman sculptures. It Inciudies a double layer of ‘mall ever the shoulders. One of the oldest specimens of interinked mall yet found, which was uncovered in a rd century BC Celtic {grave in Romania, adds to the evidence that the Celts wore the Creators of this form of armor. Brennos wears @ chain belt around is waist and a gold tore — that most typical of Celtic ‘@domnments— around his neck. The fore in bath Its gold and more simple iron versions may well have been a symbol of being freeman. Examples have been found throughout the Cettic word from Turkey to Britain. After the sack of Delphi, the Celts retteated to Macedonia. where many of them remained, Iving off the land. Some of them grew greedy and decided fo attack the camp of the wealthy Greek warlord Antigonus. was a night attack, but the Colts found the Greek camp empty. They had been tricked. Antigonus decisively defeated them at the battle of Lysimacheia In the ‘winter of 278 BC. Realzng they were now no longer masters of Greece, the Celts let another adventure beckon them. A war band marched eastward towards Byzantium and crossed over the seq into Asia. Here they fought os mercenaries for the king of Bithynia betore they moved further east to establish their own kingdom in what today Is the land around Ankara in Turkey. This kingdom. which became known as Galatia, was the furthest east ‘the Cells ever ventured trom Europe.Celtic mercenaries in Egypt, first half of 3rd century BC ‘century before the Celts invaded Greece, they had served in Greek armies as mercenaries, where their sklls o& horsemen had been particulary valued. Xenophon, a Greek chronicler and cavalry officer of the ath century BC. describes thelr performance In the wars between the Greek city states, n this instance against the Thebans: ‘Few though they were, they were scattered here ‘ond there. They charged towards the Thebans, threw thelr javelins ‘and then dashed away as the enemy moved towards them, often, turning around and throwing more javelins. While pursuing these tactics, they sometimes dismounted for a rest, But if anyone ‘charged upon them while they were resting, they would easly leap onto their horses and retreat, It enemy warriors pursued them for from the Thebon army. these horsemen would then tum ‘around and wiack them with their javelins. Thus they manipulated the entre Theban army, competing It to advance oF fll back at thelr wil’ Ths sa fascinating description of the Celts in battle, Untainted by mythic visions of them as naked barbarians. Here, they seem fo have the capabilly of performing as dragoons would in later centuries, acting as mounted light Infantry, able 10 fight on horseback ond on fost. The reputation of Celtic mercenaries extended os for as the ‘Greek world and, folowing the collapse of Alexander the Great's ‘empire, there were several Greek warlords rung over kingdoms ‘around the Mediterranean. In Egypt, the Ptolemaic dynasty reigned, but It brought with it a dependency on Greek ‘mercenaries. Sometimes this reficnce could be exploited, and ‘around 259 BC, Plolemy Il, who was on the verge of war with @ rival found his own Celtic troops had mutinied. They wanted to set up their own Celtic kingdom along the Nie. Ptolemy defeated them and took severe rettibution, Those that were not kiled were loft on an island in the Nile to starve to death, This experience, however, dic not prevent Ptolemy Il from recruiting new Celtic mercenaries years later Prolemy il and Piolemy IV continued to recruit Cetts into thelr ‘army. collecting them from the Hellespont, the thin orm of sea between Asia and Europe, suggesting that many Celts remained in Macedonia ater the'r defeat by the Greeks. One time, a group of Celts had to be shipped back because they had become demoralized by an ecipse of the moon. believing this signified their defeat. and they refused to fight. On another occasion, the Celts proved decisive. At the battle of Rophla, a foree of 4,000 (Plate 7) Celtic horsemen fought with the Egyptian army against the Sytians. who also had some Celtic mercenaries in thei ranks. A ‘he battle raged, some of the Egypilans fled trom the combat anc the Sytians pursued them, But when the Syrian infantry became ‘disorganized, Ptolemy saw his opportunity and sent in his Cali ‘cavalry, whe were never happie than when dealing with broker formations of foot soldiers. Xenophon recalls similar opportunity when Celtic horsemen rode atter fleeing Greeks, using their long ‘wards to cut down the running foot soldiers. ‘he Cots in the painting are shown enjoying their period of service In Egypt, taking a tide in a boat along the Nile to see some Of the sights, while their Egyptian servants cower around ther, taid of these tall blond warriors wearing mall armor and bronze helmets, Indeed, they must have seemed just os exotic to the locas a: Egypt seemed to them. There seems to be an arrogance ‘about them, as though they are considering that this land could bbe thes just for the taking. Generally, however, the Celts proved to be loyal Hoops, being used by Ptolemy V to suppress a rebellion. That the Colts themselves took this foreign service seriously ks ‘demonstrated by the survival of some grat let by Celtic warriors Con the walls of the tomb of Set! | at the ime of Ptolemy V. "OF the Galatians.” they wrote. ‘we, Thoas, Calistratos, Acannon and Apollonios, come, and a fox we caught here.” The grat wa witten in perfect Greok, indicating that os port of thelr sevice they had mastered the language of the Greek-led Egyptian army, lust as all rectus of the Foreign Legion today are expected tc leam French. It's ciso interesting to note that one of the Celts, o Galatians as they were also known. had a name derived from the Greek god Apollo, whose shrine they had sacked a hundked year eater.Gallic refugees in Britai middle of 1st century BC [Uts Seneg. os ne names ofthe Cat n Europe he mast successful of the Ronan warlords, he turned the tide of Celtic, mmiftary dominance in the ancient world. Unti his aval, the Cetts enjoyed unrivaled power in westemn and central Europe, After him, things would never be quite the some, and supporters of Celtic Independence would retreat fo the outskirts of Bitain and lreiand, the region known today as the Cac fringe. The bad news for the Colts artived between 65 and 60 BC when a German warlord named Ariovstus invaded the land of the Gauls (now France). At fist the French Celts tied to use the German to defeat their own Celtic rivals, but. this just gave him more power and encouragement. When the Gauls turned to Rome for help, Julus ‘Caesar saw his opportunity, Never would the phrase ‘divide and conquer’ become more appropricte. On the invitation of the Cotls, Caesar marched @ Roman army into Gaul, thus beginning bis conquest of the whole country. Caesar played Celtic tbe against Cettic tbe, employing Cattle horsemen as mercenaries and winning weaker chieftains ver fo his side. It was only when he had marched into the heart Cf he country that the Celts began to ray themselves. in the north of Gaul, a porticulaty flerce confederation of tribes known as the Beigae stoodiin hs way, Hardened by years of border warfare with the Germans, and possibly port German themselves. they were ferocious worri's, ond Caosar took his time. He used Celtic horsemen allies 10 plunder the lands of the Belgce, thus weakening thel resolve to conttont him as they heard reports of their farms being ravaged by the Romans. Caesar dug in his main ‘army behind entrenchments and wolted for the skirmishing to take is tol a strategy used by the Celts themselves centuties eat in Greece, It coud be that Coesar had read of this in the classical fexts he carted with him. The strategy worked. though. The suppiles of the main Belgic army began fo tun out and theit forces broke apart under the strain of further raiding. Caesar now ‘moblized his main army, and the Belgae were defeated piece by piece. The painting shows « couple of Gallic warras who have become refugees, fled France. and crossed the English Channel ‘0 Bitain, where they are teling a British Celtic chieftain of the tate that has befallen them. The Bish chieftain stands upon a splendid two-wheeled chariot of the type typical of La Tene Colts. They ore {ost ight vehicles, ond some historians believe it was the Celts. not (Plate 8) the Romans, who fist created the great roads of western Europe. These historians feel that the Celts bul these long straight ro0ds with planks of wood for the chariots to run along, and the Romans simply come later and covered them in stone. Celtic coins found in France show the dynamism expected of these Chariots with horses with flaring nostris and buiging thighs and tidars with cloaks fying behind them. The Bish chieffain seen here wears @ magnificent bronze helmet and caries a bronze shield decorated with inlaid colored gloss. Both these lems are based, ‘on objects found in the river Thames and dated fo the fist century, 8C. Some archaeologists. however. believe these objects were not Infended for battle, but are ceremonial. the helmet perhaps being Used on a sacred sculpture, Similar decorative weapons have been found as offerings to ver gods. The symmetry ofthe pattems ‘ko suggests that these objects may have been made outside the Collie word in Italy or the Near East. After al the British Celts were ort of @ very sophisticated trading network coveting all of Europe. Events of 43 AD show that the Bish Colts did not lean from. the experience of thelr fellow Celts across the Channel, the Atrebates of southern England were having o hoid time defending themselves against the advances of the Cafuvelauni, 0 they turned fo the Romans for help, The Romans, of course, were only to0 pleased fo intervene, and a Roman army soon landed in Britcin. Over the next fity years, Celtic tibe fought ‘against Celtic tbe. with the Romans enjoying their support when it sulted them, until Rome had added Brtain as for as the Scottish lowlands to its empire. Gildas, a northern Biton, conclided in 540 ‘AD that ‘it has always been true of this people that we are weak in beating off the weapons of the outside enemy but strong in fighting amongst each other.’ This defeat of Celtic power however, should not be viewed os 2 complete calamity for the Celtic people and should be understood within the nature of Roman rule. The Empire wos bull very much by making room for local chieftains to rule their own tertory just so long a3 they oid their taxes to the central authortly. Thus, Celtic warlords continued to rule thelr regions in Britain ond France just as they had done before hand, only now they lived In Romanvstylo vilas, called themselves by Latin names, and drank Italian wine more frequently than they had before the armies of Caesar came.Cassivellaunus, British chieftain, middle of 1st century BC Onegai cay nine niga of net contr 26 ian ats Jcould stand on the chakciffs of Dover and see the flickering lights of the Romon Empire that had conquered thet Gallic brothers. Refugees spoke of the sparkling iron and bronze armor of the legionaries ond the great digging and excovation of fotttications. Some Britons advised helping thelr continental ‘comrades and shipped supplies and warriors acioss the Channel The Druids were apparently the dhiving force behind this ‘assistance, and Caesar would never forgive them. in order to bring {an ond fo this aliance, Caesar gathered a fleet together and in ‘54 BC he crossed the Channel and landed in southeast Engiand, ‘Caesar's landing was unopposed, but ine Ceits watched the hundreds of ships Gnd thousands of men with caution. Riding Inland, Coesar encountered a group of Cells in chariots and on horseback. A skirish folwed in which Caesar's oops stormed & hilfor By using their shields in the classic ‘tortoise shell’ manner to force thelr way over the ramparts. All the time, word was passing through the ttloes of southeast England that the invader must be ‘opposed. The warlord they chose to unite under was Cassivelicunus, the fist Biton fo be named in a wilten history. Cossivellaunus was chieftain of the Catuvellauni who were, lronicaty, themselves recent invaders of Britain, having been ‘originally part of the Belgic peoples in northemn ‘France before ‘moving across the Channel fo settie north of London. This realty must be fully oppreciated as the Celts themselves made great play, and stil do, of being the original inhabitants of Britain, but they hed in fact displaced the true aboriginal inhabitants of Brain invasions just os ruthiess as those of the Romans or later peopies. Cassivellaunus fought @ queria war against the Romans. harassing them with his cavalry and charioteers and forcing them to hide behind ther entrenched camps. When overconfidence osessed the Britons, the Romans savaged them in a pitched bottle, and Caesar advanced to the Thames. The Romans were now entering the terttory of Cassvellounus. Wooden stakes had been sunk into the river bed and Celtic warriors walted on the ‘other side, but Caesar sent his men into the river, and even though ‘ony thelr heads just showed above the water, they managed to sttuggle across and dtive the retreating Calis back Into their homeland, If was now that Cossivellaunus’s alliance began to ‘weaken. Te nearby tribe of the Thnovantes made a treaty with (Plate 9) ‘Cassar in retun for Roman help ogainst the Catuvetounl, They ‘even told Caesar where the great chieftains hitfort tay. Puling the majority of his troops together, Caesar launched a massive attack that overwhelmed the hilfort and its defenders, but Cassivellaunus wos nowhere to be found. instead, the Catic ‘warlord had ordered an attack by the tribes of Kent, neorest to the Roman landing. to cut off Caesar's tine of communication and supplies. Coesor was forced back to his base camp on the coast. No great damage was inflicted, but I seems to have brought both sides to their senses ond, according to Caesar, Cossiveliaunus offered terms for peace, suomitted ostages and tribute money, fond alowed Cassar to return to Gaul, Caesar certainly pus the best face on these events, but then the only account we have of the events is his. It seems lkely, therefore, that Cossiveliaunus had Cleverly put pressure on Caesar's advance, compeling him to return fo his base camp and abandon Britain. In this ight, the Cettic warlord had won a great victory. forcing the Romans out of Bian, The reconstruction of Casslvelounus depicts him as @ grand Cottic warlord wearing the decorative bronze armor described in the previous painting, based on examples found in the Thames, the front ine of his terilory north of London. To his rights @ chariot ‘ond hilfort entrance, both typical of the British Cells. To his lt is ‘warrior with a chest covered in blue Body markings. One of the eatliost names for the Briish Colts was "Protanl’, a wore perhaps tived from the Celtic meaning ‘people who paint themselves" Ths later became ‘Britanni’, the name which came to signify the ‘country and its people. Cassar recorded that the Batons covered their bodies with a blue stain, ond many historians since have ‘ossumed this wos achieved with woad, a natural blue pigment derived from a plant. The recovery of a well-preserved Celtic body ftom a marsh in Lindow in Cheshire, however, has contradicted this thought, it showed that the painted matks on his body were ‘achieved with coppersich clay containing azurte or malachite. which produces an intense blue.Ornette mary waysin wrich ne Cats managed to co-ent comfortably with the Romans within their empire was by contiibuting wariors to the Roman army. Indeed, for many young Cettic men it was not merely a sign of bute or subservience, but © gteat opportunity to join a fruly intemational force. thereby enabling them to travel all around the Mediterranean world and Perhaps make a fortune for themselves. it wos very much the same spit that enabled Scots Highlondess, centuries later, to be incorporated within the army of the Bash Empire and gain access fo the entie globe, giving those who chose to become businessmen a chance fo prosper rightly In the colonies. For the ‘ancient Cals, it was also a wonderful way to seltie old scores. The Marcomanni were a Germanic barbarian tribe lving ‘long the norinem side of the Danube. Around 181 AD. the ‘Marcomanni joined forces with the Quad to roid the Roman provinces to thei south, the other side of the Danube. The land they ravaged wos the old heartiand of the central European Celts ‘and the people they attacked and saughtered were Romanized Celts. There was never any love lost between the Celts ond ‘Germans. For centuries. they had fought with each other. raiging ‘each other's lands. t was @ German invasion of Gaul that hed {forced the Gallic Ces to call upon the Romans for support, which reauited In the Conquest of thai land. The Cetts of the Donube provinces were now more than happy to fight with the Romans ‘agains these barbarian Invaders. The pointing depicts a retaliatory roid against @ Morcomanni village cartied out by Cettic warriors serving with the Roman army. The Celie wattio in the center wears scale armor, a cheaper alternative to mall, which had once again become popular in the Roman army. Criginaly trom the Middle East, and as old as mat self, this form of armor was made of elther bronze or iron scales, ora mixture of both. The ather warriors wear mall. Theirhelmets are ‘of the Attic type, examples of which appear on stone reliefs in Trojan’s forum in Rome, These may have been essentially ‘ceremonial helmets, reserved for parades, but the wearing of twin plumes reminds one of earier Celtic helmets, and this reference ‘may have been intended by the Romanized Celts. Troughout the history of the Roman army, there was never ony standardized Uniform, and nen-ltalion warriors serving In the army would frequent let thelr own native customs influence the combat wear or they would simply wear what was available. The wounded: (Plate 10) German wears an adapted version of a Roman bronze cavoiry helmet that wos either obtained through ai trade or, more Ikely, part of his booty from a previous rod. The central Celtic warrior holds the head of a barbarian, for which he would probably have been paid by his Roman ‘commander, just as soldiers in the French and Indian War in the midle of the 18th century were paid for the scalps of dead. ‘enemies. Headhunting was a tegular occurrence on the frontier ‘among the barbarian tribes. ond many Cetic warriors outside of the army may have acted as freelance bounty hunters, working in {gangs to root out barbarian bandls and binging their heads ‘back to display in o marketplace before collecting thelr money, Roman chronicles recall the name of one of these bounty hunters ‘Gs Chatietio, who operated on the Rhine frontier near Tier Beginning as bandit himself, he fred of this way of lfe and rode info the nearest Roman town to enist. Unable fo Join the reguar ‘army. he offered himself as ctreeiance soldier. Operating at night. he crept up on borbarion bonds ond cut off their heads as they slept. Soon he was leading @ gong of professional headhunters. The local Roman commander heard of his success and fecognized his value. As the Romans pursued invading Franks during the doy. Chatietto and his gang were allowed fo harass ‘them at night. The combined pressure served to defeat the Franks CChatietto rose swifty within the ranks of the Roman army until one day when his luck ran out during @ confrontation with the ‘Alamanni and he was speared fo death,Da ancient lond of Dacia opproximates fo the modem stato ‘of Romania, north of the Danube, and embraces the mountainous lericry of Teansyvania. The Dacian people were © mature of many diferent races and cultures. Steppe warios from, ortho he Biaek Sea appear to have invaded the area. and their Sarmation cute mixed with the Graeco-Thracian culture to the south In present-day Bulgaria and the Celtic culture of central Europe 16 the west, Wo therefore have o people who retoned Celie manners long ater the mon body of Cats had moved westwords. The Dasions were an industious people who quickly Created a settled cilzation of formers and Hoders renowned for the tichness of thele way of life. In the 2nd century AD. this prosperous land attracted the atlention of the Roman emperor Trojan. who sel out fo conquer It botwoon 10} and 105 AD, ‘Our main source for ths war and the Dacian people it was ought against isthe stone column erected In honor of Trajan’s ‘conquest Rome in 113 AD. Looking ot the stone carvings, we so many objects simiar to those employed by the Celts. The Oacians employed large, round oval shields ichly decorated with swing Caltc-sivie pattems, not unlike that found on the Thames bronze shield. wth large. round bronze bosses. Dacian heimets form two man type:—a simple cone-shaped shell and © more complex helmet with 9 pont thot curves forward inthe syle of a Phrygian Cop. None of these ore especialy Celic ond may represent the Hellenic Intuence. ody armor consis of mal scale. ond bonded crmor- Bosc clothes are tunic trousers. and cloak. Swords Gre long slashing types typical of the Cells and Germans, and one even echoes the Le Tene sve. A windsockstyle standard in the shape 9f 2 dragon with an open mouth evokes ihe influence of steppe ‘warriots Such os the Sarmations, os does the use of scale armor. TTumpets after the sve of the Cefic camyx are shown. Spears, Javelns, aves, and bows are common weapons. osis that distinctly Dacian weapen the fat. The seated figure af the bottom of the painting cores ths curved, double-handed samurcl sword:stvie, ‘weapon. The Romans were said fo have increased the use of leg Gondor amor. smior fo that used by gladiators. o protect themselves against these vicious weapons “flan began hs invasion of Daca with thirtoen legions. Like Cotts esewhore, the Dacians retteated before him. avoiding 0 pitched bottle. Inthe winter of 101 AD, they mage a Counterattack, but It wos repulsed. Tigjan advanced Info the (Plate 11) Carpathian mountains and found the capital of the Dacions. Rather than have it destroyed. the Dacian leader Decebalus lft it ‘open to the Romans. and Trajan could retum to Rome, confident in having won a new province ond coling himself Dackus Decabalis. however, was biding his time andin 105 AD he led an Uprising. The bitter campaign that followed featured guerila fighting, ond atrocities were committed by both sides. This time the Dacian capital was taken by force, and Decebalus fled fo the orth where he committed suicide, During these campaigns, the Romans brought the full Ingenuity of their engineering skis into use, just as Caesar had employed against Vercingetorix. The major achievements Included @ wooden bridge across the Danube —at almost a kilometer long it was the longest permanent bridge in antiquity — ‘end cin improved elif road trough the lon Gates of Orsova. This ‘was a deep limesione gorge in which a twelve-mile road wos partly cut out of the rock, with an additional span created with planks supported by brackets keyed info the cilf. The Impressiveness of the organization and engineering of the Roman, ‘Gchlevement is well represented on Trajan’s column, Faced with the remarkable determination of the Romans, itis not suptsing that the Dacians failed to preserve thelr Independence,Dacian village raided by Romans, early 2nd century AD painting shows the aftermath of a Roman raid one Dacian vilage during Trojan’s second campaign ta conquer Dacia. The stakes were high for Trajan. Not only had the Dacian king defied his rue, but the Romans were used to getting their hands €n the profitable Dacian gold mines. Subsequently, the fighting was particularly bitter. Here, soldiers of the Roman Legion 10% Unpia hove painted their presence in blood on « Dacian hut so there would be no mistaking who authored this devastation, Just as some US soldiers during the Vietnam War would leave ‘calling cords’ in vilages they had raided so the enemy would be under fhe misapprehension as fo thelr Intentions or power. ‘Although Celts and Romans could get along very well within the Empire. both appreciating the increased prosperity of their ‘Material lives and both opposing the destructive raids of the Germanic barbarians, when this status quo broke down there would be terrible confict.In the Ist century AD in Britain, the king Of the Icenl ef naif hie fortune to the Rornan Empire fo ensure continued good relations, but the local Romans wete greedy They took everything belonging to the old Cac king. beat his wife, and roped his doughters. The resulting uprising shook the Roman Empire fo is foots. The wife of the dead Celtic king was Boudica and she wrought her revenge devastatingly. Bousico’s Celtic army assaulted Colchester, the neorest Roman settlement. The Reman garrison was too small fo defend the town and withdrew to the temple complex. There they held ‘out for two doys unt the Celts stormed it and slaughtered ‘everyone within—men, women, and children, ond the sefilement wos burned fo the ground. leaving only a thin layer of ash for future archaeologists fo find. A legion, the IX Hispana, ortived 100, late to defend the town and wos itsetf suounded and butchered, London andSt, Albans were olso overrun, and Tacitus claims some 70,000 Roman citzens perished. It eventually took a force of 10,000 Roman legionaries to stop Boudica. It is said that 80,000 Britons dled in the subsequent battle. Boudica, hersetf, did not survive the combat. Such was the ferocity of battle when Celt and oman had « faling out Another savage war between Romans and Celts was fought in Spain. "This war between the Romans and Celtiberians is called the flery war, fecalied the Roman chronicler Polybius, for while ‘wars in Greece or Asia are settied with one or two pitched battles. the battles there dragged on, oniy brought to @ temporary end by (Plate 12) ‘the darknass of night. Both sides refused to let thelr courage flag or their bodies tie." It was a war fought party as ¢ guerila confct with both sides seeking to outdo each other with atrocities. One Roman commander invited a group of Spanish Cais to his camp fo discuss terms regarding possible mercenary employment. Once the Celts were dlscrmed and Inside the Roman stockade, the Roman commander had the gates secured from the outside and sont in his soldiers to massacre the Cettic warriors and thelr fares. ‘The Roman was honored with a triumph for this brutal act. "They are no better than bandits,’ grumbled the Roman general Scipio Aficanus, unabie to pin down the Spanish Celts, ‘They may be brave when devastating neighboring fields, burning villages, and tusting cattle, but are worth nothing in a requir army.” But for two thousand years this had been the most effective means of Celtic warfare, and it is still employed today by various terrorist ‘organizations associated with Coie causes. In Spain, the Romans finally triumphed. Frequently it appears that Calle wastiors only ragged out the inevitable outcome, essentially defending tunwinnable situations, prolonging misery, and sutfering far longer than was necessary. Some may regard this dogged reluctance to ‘accept certain defeat as a virtue, but fo society ot large, which prefers peace to war, itis perhaps the greatest Celtic viceCeltic marines in Romano-Byzantine service, 6th century AD fot only were the Celts great land warriors, especially sklled as horsemen, but they were also great sailors ana fighters at sea, This talent was fist recorded by Julius Caesar during his conquest of Gaul in the Ist century BC. The Celts of Brittany, living on the Allantic coast of France, thrived from trade and fishing conducted between France and southern England, especialy Cornwall, where a strong atfinity grew between the two peoples, which remains today In their shared Calc tongua ond heritage. They lived on headionds and islands in tidal estuaries frequently Ccut off from the mainland. in $7 BC, the Veneti the leading Celtic fibe inthis coastal region, decided to resist the might of Caesar AA ist, the Romans tied to use their engineering skis 1 reach the remote island forts, but the Celts simply escaped in ther ships. Instead, as usual, Caesar chose to rely on the skis of the Celts themselves and employed friendly Colic shipbuilders turner Infond to create and man a fleet that would help him take on the Vernet “They have flat bottoms,’ wrote Caesar of the Celtic ships mode for him, ‘which enables them fo sal in shalow coastal water. Their high bows and stemns protect them trom heavy seas {and violent storns, as do thet strong hulls made entirely trom oak. The cross-imbers—beams a foot wide—are secured with ron nails {8 thick as @ man’s thumb. Their anchors are secured with chains Not ropes, while their sals are made of raw hide or thin leather, 50 {95 to stand up to the violent Atlantic winds’ The Atlantic Ocean was the wildest of seas known fo the oncients of the Mediterranean world, and to master these seas in frequent sailing between France, Britain, and Ireland must have made these Coastal Celts very tough sallors indeed. hei reputation must have 'been good in the classical word, Inevitably, by using thase Celtic skils against their own people, the Romons defeated the Venetl in @ fierce sea battle in the Loire estuary. Using scythes attached to long poles, the Rornans were able to slash the rigging of the Venet ships \With such @ strong reputation for seamanship and bravery on ‘board ships, IIs litte wonder that Cetic salors were employed By ‘Nests all around the Mediterranean. The painting depicts a scene In_an eastem Mediterranean port where Celtic marines are enjoying themselves outside a brothel just before being arrested by a Byzantine shore quard. The collapse of the western Roman, Empire in the 5th century had itle effect on maritime trade, which (Plate 13) Wes one of the main sources of income for al Mediterranean Powers. It simply alowed the easter Roman Empire. now known {asthe Byzantine Empire, to step in and take a more dominant roe, eventually leading fo @ partial reconquest of the western empire by the Byzantines under the Emperor Justinion, As a result Byzantium and its chief city of Constantinople became c magnet for mercenaties from ail around the ancient world. The Viking Varangions are perhaps some of the most well known of these. exotic warrors, coming all the way from Scandinavia along the fveis of Russia into the Black Sea to serve the Byzantine army, Although less celebrated at this time, It seems tkely that Cells aso continued this aspect of their lvelihood, and many Celts must have served in both the armies and navies of Byzantium, Judging from tne blond woman on the tight in the painting, it was not only men that were attracted trom the northern and western parts of Europe to serve the Byzantines,Romano-Britons battle against Picts, 5th century AD the Roman Empire came to an end in Bitain at the beginning of the 5th century when the agents of the Emperor and their soldies left the country to concentrate on the defense of France ‘and Italy against major Incusions by Germanic barbarians, The ream of the Roman Empire was over in a speci sense in that Bitons were now free trom direct Roman control, but they had ‘grown used fo the Roman way of life. Romanized Celtic warlords ved in vilas, were surounded by courtiers who spoke Latin and ‘Greek, worshipped the religion of Cort, and maintained strong ‘rode ‘Inks with the Mediterranean. They liked this Ite ond Continued to fight for Its survival against the barbatian raiders harrying their coasts. It's the world of Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table, and with the birth of this legendary hero we add a new layer to the history of the Cos It seems likely that Arthur was @ Romano-Bitsh warlord living towards the end of the Sth century. He followed in the woke of ‘Amibrosius Aurelanus who, In the 460, led @ group of Romano: Bitsh horsemen agains the Saxon invaders of eastern Engiand. Hs wariors were called ‘combrogl’. a word that means “fellow countymen’ and is the root behind the names of 'Cymyy’ and ‘Cumbr which ate used to denote the Celts of Wales and northivest Bitoin, Ambrosius, who dled in these campaigns against the barbarians, was succeeded by Arthur. Allwe really know ofthis celebrated warlord is that he fought twelve battles. Many of these. ave been traced to sites in norinern England ond may reter to battles not against the Saxons, but against Colic raiders trom Ireland or Scotland, who were just as much a threat fo the maintenance of ‘omanites'. Celtic chroniclers declore thot Arthur ‘cattied the image of the Holy Mary. the everlasting Virgin, on his shield’ and “the Cross of Our lord Jesus Chist across his should Thus, his campoigns against the pagan Picts. Scots, and Saxons could well have been conducted as crusades, with oll the cttendant savagery ths implies. The painting depicts 0 clash between Romano-Brtsh horsemen and Picts in northern England. The main horseman, collapsing fo the ground. wears armor and equipment strongly influenced by the late Romon Empire. His scale armor Is typically Roman, although Its presence in England over hundreds of years would mean that its manufacture was undoubtedly Cattic, Hs helmet is of the prominent Ridge style with nosal and cheek (Plate 14) pieces, similar to one found at Burgh Castle in Norfolk and, again, typical of late Roman cavalry. To reinforce his Celtic ofigin however, he wears a gold forc around his neck, just Ike the Romane-Bitsh horsernen celebrated in Anetin’s poem of around {600 AD describing @ Celtic war band's campaign against the ‘Angles of northern England. The horseman in the background ‘wears a Germanic spangenhelmstyie helmet made of riveted metal segments. Both warts carry long Germanic paraiielsided spatha swords. This mixture of Roman, German, and Celtic styles s the essence of Dark Ages warfare in westem Europe. Whether they iked it or not, and they liked it less than the Impact of the Romans, the influence of the Germanic barbarian had come to stay and would atfect much of Celtic development over the next 1800 years. ‘Arthur's greatest victory was won at the Battie of Badon Hl ‘Tne chronicler Nennius describes the natural hot water springs that bubbled up at Bacon, and it seems Ikely that this wos Bath, the ancient Somerset town settled by the Romians who built baths and temple cround what both they and the Cetts considered sacred waters. With its recs of ‘tomanitas’, remains of vilas anc covered baths, pernaps ruined by this time. half sunk into the hot water swamp by the fiver, I seems an appropriate place for Confrontation between the powers of Romano-Bitain and the barbarian invaders. Somewhere on the his surounding Bath the battle was fought. It might wel have taken the form of a siege oF Inlastad some thee days and nights. Finally, it was decided by o grand cavairy charge in which the Rornano-Brish Celts mounted their horses ond swept the Saxons off the battsfield, It wos o resounding victory that kept the Germanic raiders out of the West Country. which even today in its most remote areas retains a strong Celtic identity,Roman-British Celts corner a Saxon raider, 6th century AD 12 Saxon conquest of Romane-Cettic Britain began with an ‘ror in judgment. For hundreds of years. Roman armies had ‘employed Germanic barbarians as auxitaries. At the beginning of the 5th century, Vortigem, the Romano-Briish overlord, was ‘assailed on many fronts, Aside from lish and Pict raiders on his northern and western frontiers, there were Germanic raiders on his ‘eastern coasts, and from within he faced the challenge of ‘Ambrosus, who had powerful alles in Gaul. In order fo secure his postion. he invited a large group of Saxons to settle with their familes on the island of Thanet in the tiver Thames. The Saxon commander, Hengist. understood Vortigem’s weakness and recommended he bring in more of his countymen to help, \Vortigem agreed, and nineteen more ships landed. In order to pay these warriors, Hengist suggested they be granted land in Kent. By the time Vortigern reatzed his control was sloping away, it was too late, The Saxons spread over southeast England, but Vortigern’s son, Vortimer, led a counterattack, and many bloody batties were ‘ought, Hengist recommended a summit with al the leading Cettic warlords, including Vorigemn, to discuss peace terms. This wos the second great lapse of judgment. As cafeed, Vortigern and the Romano-Celts arived unarmed, but Hengist had insttucted his ‘warriors to Keep knives in thelr boots, and the trap was sprung. Some 300 leading Romano-Celts were slaughtered, andthe Cettic ‘command of England never fully recovered from this blow. The ‘wor between the Saxons and Romano-Bitons carried on for centuries, with the Celts gradually being pushed back to the lands fof the west, such as Wales and Cowal The painting shows @ Saxon comered by Romano Bish soldiers. The Saxon wears a Ridge helmet with an iton boor crest like that found at Benty Grange in Detbyshire. It has been suggested that the iron frame supported pane’ of hom. The boor represented the Germanic god Freyr and was © symbol invoking protection in combat. also indicated noble rank. At his wast Is © ‘characteristic weapon of the Saxons, the sex. a long single ‘edged knife. The two Romano-Bitish warriors wear scale armor in the Roman-style and alto two Ridge-style helmets. The main figue’s helmet is studded with semi-precious jewel, which could be o Roman idea, but is ao deeply Cottc,Insh warlords in the ‘army of Brian Boru in the 11th century ore reported by ish chroniclers to have wom such helmets, although these. in tur (Plate 15) may have been inspired by the presence of recently dscovered Roman settlements in ireland. ‘One of the few recorded actions between the Romano-Bitish ‘and the German invaders s mentioned in @ poem by Anelin from ‘around 600 AD. He describes how the Gododdin, a Romano-Britsh tte contioling the eastem end of the Antonine Wal in lowland Scotland, spent a year preparing for a raid against the Angies of Northumbria. The warlord Mynycogg lavishly feasts his followers, giving them mead and wine, an indication of the feudal loyatties binding 0 warlord and his retinue of leading warriors, oF a8 Anaitn ‘Smply puts I, they paid for their mead-feast with the ves.’ With three hundred leading warrior: and thelr folowers, Mynydogg rode south fo attack the Angles at the battie of Cattraeth in Yorkshire. Thay wore coats of mall and had gold fores round their necks. As brave ond welhequipped os they were, they nevertheless came to grief at the hands of the Angles. All three hunted were slain, and the reaim of the Celts was pushed further back The Cetts of Britain were not alone in their struggle coast the Germans. in France, Romano-Gaus depended on warlords such {8 Ecdicius, who led a spitted defense of central France against the incursions of Goths. Supported by the great land ownels, Ecdicius led a wor band of horsemen to pursue the gangs of bborbarian bandits. So hard cid he press them. it was soid the Goths were forced to leave the bodies of thelr comrades behind, but chopped off their heads so Ecdiclus coula not tall trom theit haistyies the number of Goths he had slain, Affer a successful ‘campaign against the Goths, he arrved in the town of Clermont ‘and received a rapturous welcome from relieved citizens, ‘What tears and rejoicing greeted youl’ recalled his brother-in-law Sidonius, ‘Some townspeople Kissed away the dust that covered you. Others caught hold of your bridle. thick with biood and foarn, When you wished to take off your helmet, the clamouring citaens Uunclasped the bands of on. Some entangled themselves in the straps of your greaves. Some counted the dents along the edges Of your sword blunted by slaughter. While others fingered the holes made by blade and point amid your shirt of mal. You bore cll these stupicities of your welcome with good grace!” Not eniy on expression of Celtic desperation, but ako an unwittingly good escription of the equipment worn by a Romano-Cettic warord at this time,unadd wor @ formidable Celtic hilfort set upon a rocky Jouterop suounded by bogland. twas the main power base f Datiada. the region of northwest Scotiand ruled by the Scots from the Sth century. Contusingly, the Scots were not natives of Seotiand, but were n fact lish Celts who sailed across the lish Sea. toraic the westem coasts of Scotland and the rest of Bitain. They wete called ‘Scott’, a name pethaps derived from the lish verb Yo plunder’. They had fought against the Romans, and now that the Empire ‘was in deciine, they decided to settle in Brtain, ‘choosing the land of the Picts in Scotland for heir main settlement, The ish Scots continued the great tradition of Celtic, seamanship. Their most typical seagonng boat wos the curragh. o simple oval structure made of animal hides stretched across a Wicker framework. They were surprisingly reslient in rough seas, fenabing the Scols fo Taid as far south as Wales and southern Englond. In 891. tne Anglo-Saxon chronicle records that “three Irahmen come to King Alfred ina boat without a rudder, from Ireland whence they had made their way secretly becouse they \Wished for the love of God To be a foreign land. It was made of two and a half hides and they carried wih them food for seven days. And after seven days they came fo land in Comwall onc \went immediately to King Altec,’ Recenty, a Celtic curragh wos reconstructed using hazel rods woven together to which three ‘cow hides were stitched. The whole process took only seven days fo complete and wos ready to be rowed on the sec. The Picts were a mysterious people about whom very ite Is known. Mainly Celtic, tney appear fo have spoken a language that Included an older tongue of the aboriginal people they ‘dlsplaced. Pict is c Roman name refering to “painted people’. indicating that they followed the Cettic custom of either painting oF tattooing thelr bodies with biue patterns. The Picts were flercely independent people who appear to have succeeded in ‘the Battie against the Romans, being the descendonts of the Caledonian iibes that the Romans fst encountered. Having Ived without Roman domination. they then had to contend with the Goelic speakers of Dunada, The Pictish style of warfare has been recorded on a fow engraved stone slabs. Keen horsemen. lke ail Celts, they used both javelins and longer lances. Their foot soldiers fought with longer spears or plkes and may have formed a kind of phakans in battle, just 08 Scottish soldiers aid centuries later under Wiliam: ts watching the Scots at Dunadd, 8th century AD (Plate 16) Wallace ond Robert the Bruce. They ako carried the Characterisically Pictish square shield decorated with swing Celtic patterns. Such a shield Is camied by the warrior on the right in the painting. He wears a spangenhelim-styie helmet with nasal plece. which may have been derived from the Germanic Angles they fought against on the Scottish border, Such helmets ore depicted on the Aberlernno stone, but they may be used there fo tignly their Germanic enemies. The other warriors in the painting fe lightly clad, carrying axes, spears, and swords. The older La Téne-style appears fo have survived in the form of Pictish sword hills, The warrior in the middle wears a combined cloak and hood that is similar fo that worn by the crossbow-carrying warfor on the Drosten stone. and this weapon should be added to the Pictish arsenal The Picts and Scots fought for centuries for control of northwest Scotland. in 749, the lish Annals of Uster recorded a ‘major compaign by the Picts against Datriada. Led by Angus mac Fergus, they coptured several strongholds, and a Scots warlord was savagely drowned, forcing the others fo flee back to Ireland, Tne Angles took advantage of this incessant confict ond invaded the eastern highlands, but the Picts met them at the battle of Dunnichan or Nectansmere in 685 and soundly defeated them, ensuring Celtic independence in Scotland. It Is this victory that may be commemorated on the Aberiemno stone. In the end, however, the Scots triumphed over the Picts. and @ Scots king succeeded to the Pletith throne around 843 AD. As result, the highlands now bear ther name rather than being known as Pictlona,hete were countess sec: voritings of ships and boats, wrote the Celtic chronicler of the “Wors of the Gaedhi (the Irsh) with the Gail (he Vikings)" In the eary 10th century. ‘Not one harbor or landing pot or forressin all of Munster was without fleets ff Danes and pirates . . . They made spoibiand and sworc-iand, ‘They ravaged Ireland's churches and sanctuaries and destroyed her reiquares and books. They kiled Ireland's kings and chieftains ‘and champion warriors. They ensiaved our blooming, lively ‘women, toking them over the broad green sea.’ The arrival of the Vikings was a dsaster for the Cottic people of Britain, pushing them. even further fo the fringes of the land. It was o disaster that also overtook the Saxon world, placing large sections of eastem England under Viking rule. Norwegians and Danes fist took possession of the northem cond western isands of Scotiand, setting up thelr own kingdoms, Which has given a Norse element to these lands ever since. They then sailed into the Insh Sea and swept around the Ish coast, making settiements at the mouths of the rivers before taking to horses and plunging further into the lish countryside. The Annals of Uster charted thelr progress. In 793 AD, they came os sea-bome raiders By 810 AD, they were engaged in battles with lish wostirs, slaying the men of Connemara. The ksh fought back, though, and in the same year the men of Owles and Munster staughtered the Vikings, or gentile’ as they were caled in the Annals. But the raids continued in intensity. in 820 AD. the Vikings invaded Bangor in ‘Country Down. In 824 AD, Downpattick was plundered and burt, ‘and its churches destroyed. By 826 AD. the high king of al Ireland, ‘was forced into discussing oint action with all the Ish worlords, but to no aval. The Vikings were there to stay. developing major {ottiied settlements ct Dublin. Waterford, Wexford, Cork. and Umetick With recent discoveries showing that the Romans had ‘established similar trading posts on the lish coast. it seems the Vikings were content not to conquer the whole of ireland but to limit their possessions fo the mouths of rivers where they could continue fo be part of the great Scandinavian trading network of northern Europe. Again, as with the Romans, it was not all bad ews for the native Celts of roland, According to the lish author of “The Wass of the Gaedhil with the Gall, the Vikings were successful because they were so much better armed: ‘the excellence of the foreigners’ polished. treble- platted, heavy coats (Plate 17) Of mall, their hard, strong swoids. their welkiivetted long spears It's0oms unlikely that mall armor wos unknown in reland. The irish had long had access through their own raiding to the rest of Batain, and mail was a familiar enough armor at this time. Iti probable that the Vikings. through their taiging and tracing. hod ‘access fo more of this armor and weapons. It wos this miliary ‘fftuence that impressed the lish, and it was no doubt shared with them through continued interaction in peace and war. The lish {iso learned fo use the Vikings fo thelr own end. In their endless ‘ibal civil wars, one Celtic side could aways be counted on 10 ay @ Viking war band to support them against the otner Cet ‘hus. the Celts have always been their own worst enemies. seeking outside help that ultimately weakened their own positon. The painting shows on early confict between raiding Vikings ‘and lish coastal warriors, The double handed battle axes used by ‘both sides oppear fo have been a weapon imported by the Scandinavians ond later adopted by the lish. Viking swords were {ato copied, bought. and stolen. Periodically throughout the Viking period in ireland, the Ish fought back against their presence, and in $02 AD a mojor campaign threw them out of Dubin. But they were soon back. pethaps because the lsh had grown to depend on them. as well, for thelr trading connections. By the 1th century, however, an irish warlord appeared who ‘would really shake the Vikings fo the'r roots. His name was Brian BoruBrian Boru, Irish warlord, being shown the head of a Viking 11th century AD flan Boru had the temper of o Celtic warlord. Boin to Violence, he naver gave it up. His power bose was the tribe of Dal Cass at the mouth of the river Shannen and his prey were the ‘Viking settlers of Umerick. "However small the injury he might be ‘ble To do the foreigners, recalled the chronicler of the Gaedhi ‘tian preferted ito peace. From the forests and the wastelands, the emerged fo plunder and kil the foreigners. fhe did not destroy them during the day, then he was sure to do so at night.’ Using Quertlia tactics and ving off the land, Boru proved a relentiess enemy for the Vikings. Finally. the Vikings managed to force him info @ "manly battle on the open part of the plain’, hoping 10 overawe his folowers with thelr arms and armor. Both sides rose: horses, wore mail, and wialded swords, axes and spears. The battle lasted all day and eventually the Vikings broke. The Irsn chased the fleeing Scandinavians and "beheaded from that time unt evening’. At the age of 26, Boru stormed into the Viking city of Limerick. His legend had begun, The sacking of Limerick not only fightened the Vikings, it Impressed other lish tibesmen, and they joined Boru's forces, but the more sophisticated rsh warlords were not so pleased. They hod come to depend on the trading wealth of the Viking seftioments. The lords of Leinster olied themselves with the Vidings Of Dublin, and the two armies met around 1000 AD. Brion was frumphant and Dublin was socked. Immediately. the Vikings made peace wih him, Boru was now lord of southem Ireland, onc now he tuned his attention fo the north. Boru challenged the high king of all eland to battle, but poitics was stronger than swordsmanship and the chieftains of the north saw tie point in sloughtering each other. They made their sulsmissions to him, and Bory become ruler of Ireland, even sending raiding parties to Bitain to levy tributes. ’As Boru grew older, his grip on power slipped. The lords of Leinster ond the Vikings of Dublin refused to pay him tribute, He set siege 10 Dublin, Dut for ack of supplies he wos forced to retreat. The Vikings, who sent out requests for reinforcements from over the. 20, confronted the plundering Boru to the north of Oubiin in an ‘ree called Clontart, Tne scene wos set for an epic battle. Boru’s 0n, Murchad, wos now the active leader and headed the men of Dal Cais and Munster, his most loyal followers, along with Viking ‘mercenaries and lish alles on hs flanks. The Vikings of Dubin were Joined by Vikings ftom the Ise of Man and Orkney and further (Plate 18) field, including Danes and Norwegians. “The two sides made o furious, smashing onset at each other, recorded the chronicier of the Gaedhil, and there arose « frightful screaming and fluttering ‘ove their heads os birds and demons awaited their prey. The Ish and the Vikings hacked and slashed at each other Murchad, son of Brian, held two swords, one in each hand. and felled the Vikings around him. Hs folowers surged behing the gons he made In the Viking ranks. Siguid of Orkney refused to move, ‘and both he and Murchad fought an heroic duel. With his right hand sword, Murchad snapped the straps securing the Viking’s helmet and, with nis left hand sword, brought him down with blow to his exposed flesh, Murchad moved on to another Viking warlord, but this ime his blades brake from use. The lish hero wos {orc26 fo grip the mal of the Viking and pul the shirt of armor of his body with his bare hands. Faling to the ground, both men \wrestied with each other Murchad stabbed the Viking with hs ‘own sword, but the Viking pulled a knife ond slashed the Celts stomach, With a final etfon, Murchad cut the head otf the Viking, Dut the next day he would dle trom his own wounds. Brian Boru did not take part in the bottle, he was 100 old for that, but he waited behind o wall of shields. Eventually he received the news he wanted. The Vikings had hag enough and Centar! was hs, But even though the main body of the army wos fleeing, there were sll solated groups of Viking horsemen, and ‘one of these war bands made a dash forthe lish shield wal. Bors was forced to defend himself. He hacked ct one of the Vikings ‘ond cut off his leg, but the Viking sttuck back and cut Boru'shead Inhalt, Ai the moment of his greatest success, Boru was dead. In the aftermath, the unity of Kish tibes collapsed and the Vikings tetumed to thel settlements, But never again would they seek fo dominate the lsh people.z se Lah eSLord of the Isles at Dunadd, 13th century AD cause of the Celts was not helped by the transformation of the Vikings into the Normans. By the 11th century, those Vikings who had settied In northem France in the region of Notmondy ha become known as Normans, a mixture of French ‘and Scandinavian cultures. In 1086, they invaded England and destroyed the Saxon ruling dynasty. An aggressive warrior nation, they then proceeded fo assoult the Celtic fringes of Britain that had s0 far withstood the attention of the-Saxons, They settled southern Wales and occupied much of lowiand Scotland, and in the 12th century they invaded Ireland, taking great estates of land from the Ish and establishing an Engin dominion over Ireland that would last for 600 years ‘One of the last Celtic regions to withstand the onsought of the Norman-Engish was the Kingdom of the isles. Ts included ine orthem and western isles of Scotland, the Hebrides. and the Iie Cf Man inthe lish Sea. It was o culture blending the remains of the toncient Celtic kingdom of Daliada with a more recent layer of Norse seftiement. in defiance of the mainland Scots. who were becoming an increasingly lowiand culture dominated by Norman landowne's. they continued to speak Gaelc and ruled in the Celtic traction. This civsion of Scoltih cullure led fe much power ploy. with ombitious warlords coling on the warrots of the Iles 10 help them in thei pusul of dominion of the mainiana, The most fomous Scottish warlord of the 1th century was Macbeth, later immortaized by Shakespeare os an archetype of naked ambition. in reality. he was no worse or better than the worlords he fought. Macbeth was a Gaslic-speaking warrior from Moray In the very north of Scotland and ne employed the 'Norsarnen of the northern isands to assst him. Later historians have ‘even desctbed his success on seizing the Scots throne in 1040 as o Gaelic reaction fo the excessive English Influence supported by uncan, his opponent. He ruled for 17 years, unlil Malcolm, the son of Duncan, led a revived Englis-backed army that comered Macbeth in his homeland of Moray and scughtered him, thus paving the way for @ resumption of Norman-Englsh influence and the retreat of Gaelic culture to the Kingdom of the sles, The Lora, Of the Klas anc his followers could attord to survive in olation from, the mainland as they were great sallos and traders. They thrived on G network of trade based on the lish sea linking Ireland with Bitn and Scandinavi Pollical independence survived Unt (Plate 19) 1263, when Alexande* I of Scotland defeated Haco of Norway at the battle of Largs, and the kingdom of the Isles Became pat of Scotland. Its culture remained proudly Gaolic for centuries ofterwords, however, and the Lord of the Isles stil heid cconsiderabie sway in his own recim. The dstinctive stone tombstones and grave slabs of the Western isles reveal o particular Norse Celtic culture. which was Teflected In the weapons used by these wariers. The pattern welded swords of the Vikings were widely admices ond imitated ‘A mutiobed pommel is most typical of these weapons and is Ccartied by the worries in the painting. in one form ins later developed into the great fwo-handed sword, The armor of the main figure in the painting, including his helmet, mol, and vertically quited padded wool tunic. is based on that of later ombstone affigios found in the Westoen Ise. tis very similar to lish ‘armor of the same period. The cros-ferlization of Scots and lish eventually produced the famous Gallogios Gael warriors who fought with sx foot ong bate axes and played an important part In the later history of northern retand, The Lords of the Iles Continued fo cause trouble for Scots kings tight up until the 16th century. An Engish chronicler describes the oppecronce of thelr warriors ot ths tie. "From the mitieg 10 the foot. they go uncovered. Their dress, for an over-gorment. fs. loose plaid and shit dyed with satfion. They are ormed with bow ‘and arrows, 0 broadsword, and a smal halberd, They always cony in thei bel « stout dagger. single-edged. but of the sharpest. In time of wor they cover the whole bedy with a coat of mall, made Cf fon rings, and In it they fight. The common fok among the Wid Scols go ou fo battle with the whole Body cla ina linen garment sewed together in patchwork, well daubed with wax or wih pitch {ond with on aver-coat of deerskin,Gaelic castle, Western Isles, 14th century AD In the early 14th contury. a remarkable dream briefly united the Celtic people of Brita ond Ireland. Robert Bruce had just defeated the Engish King ot the batile of Bannockburn to ensure fis postion as King of Scotiond. In this battle he had personally ‘commanded a phalanx of warriors from the Westem Wes. ond many more Gaelic warriors had joined his airy. They fought in the ‘radtional Pictish manner of forming tight groups of men aimed vith long spears. When the English knights fled before them, the Gaelic warriors employed another ancient Cetic tactic ond Jumped on horses fo pursue them. The Engish were forced out of Scotiand and Robert Bruce was its undisputed leader. He now tuned his attention to the rest of the Celtic world. Robert Bruce sent his brother Edward fo Ireland ond with him he sent a remarkable letter addressed fo all ish chieftains. ‘We ‘and our people and you and your people.’ Rober! procioimed. “fee since ancient times, share the same national ancestry ond re urged to come together more eagerly and joyfully in friendship by a common language and by common custom. We hove sent fo you our beloved kinsman, the bearer of this letter, to negotiate with you in our name about permanently maintaining ‘ond strengthening the special tendship between us and you, 60 that with God's will your nation may be able 10 recover her ‘encient liberty.” This wos on outight declaration of Celtic unity ‘2croxs the Ish sea in the face of the Norman-Englsh conquerors ‘and demonstrates that both the Scots and Ifsh were aware of ‘hele common Celtic roots. If this strategy was to succeed, then It might be posible to fun back the tide of history that had consigned the Calls fo the fringes of European history for so long, ‘Once more, perhaps, they could become the mighty warrior ‘culture they had been In the ancient wotld and retun to thelr old reais of Bitain, Gaul, ond central Europe. It was « glorious idea, reflecting the greatness of Robert Bruce's political vision, but was Edward Bruce the man to carry out the next stage? The dream began well. The O'Nells of Ulster, the dominent force in northem eland, offered Edward Bruce their kingship. They realzed that tribal dssension had been thei fractional weakness ‘and hoped to overcome ths. In 1316, Edward Bruce was crowned High King of all reland ct Dundalk Robert Bruce visited his ‘brother's lish recim, bringing with him Gologlas warriors from the ‘Wester Isles. It seemed now os though the Bruces might turn their ‘tention fo Wales. and in anticipation of this the Welsh rose in (Plate 20) revolt agoinst the English under the Cattic Lywelyn Bren. The Engish, who were beginning to panic, realized they could not even trust their Celtic mercenaries, especially the famed Welsh longbowmen’ In traditional manner, the Bruces now paraded around Ireland to receive the homage ofall the lish chieftains, and this was when things began fo turn sour. lsh suspicions were aroused by this Considerable display of power, and the warriors that traveled with the Bruces treated the land with litle respect. living off of it Ike bandits. The ideo of Celtic unity seemed fo be undercut by the realty of foreign domination, even though it came fram a fellow Cott. One lish chronicler summed up the feelings of the time. desctioing the Bruces as ‘Seattsh foreigners less noble than our ‘own foreigners (that Is, the English)’. In a curious way, despite thelr hatred of the English, the lish knew where they stood with them, Whereas these Scottish Celts oppeared to be cemanding more than the lish could deliver. By 1318, lish support for Edward Bruce was sipping, and it was {t this time thot the English pounced. Witn Ish support, Richard Cate, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, confronted Bruce at Faughort The Irish stil with Bruce recommended he wait for reinforcements Cor atthe very least use querrila warfare to wear the Enalsh down, {5 they had so many times before. But Bruce was impatient fo establish his authorty, His loyal Scots knights joined him, but the English and their lish surged round them, cutting them down. A body In splendid armor was found and presumed fo be Edward Bruce's. The heod was cut off, salted in a bucket, and sent back for the English king to gaze upon. it was not Bruce. however. for at the las! moment he had changed his royal armor for smple malin fn effort to attract less attention. His body lay e'sewhere on the battlefield, but the result wasstil the same. The great Cettic dream Of unity wos over, and the remaining Cetic reaims would battle on, Individually ogainst the encroaching powers of England. Thus fended the hopes of that mighty Celtic dominion of Europe,tic Settlements and Weapons eltic settlements were the fist great architecture of northern Europe. As the wood and stone has disintegrated over the centuries, only the great earth mounds of the hilforts have survived, but they are stil Impressive, being immense ‘chievements of engineering and excavation. One of the most Impressive is that at Maiden Castle in Dorset in southwest Englana, Drawing 1 depicts the hilfort viewed from the east at the height of its development in the Ist century BC, before a Roman army cossaulted and destroyed I. Drawing 2 shows a tower in the European Cattc style, made Cf stone and timber, Drawing 3 i @ cross-section showinghow such forticotions were constructed, The murus Gallcus conssts of timber inferacing loaded with earth ond faced with stone, Drawing 4 shows a typical early Celtic roundhouse made of timber with a thatched root. Drawing 5 is a timber hut mounted on stits Tor lakeside living. Drawing 6 & a simple dugout conee for fishing ‘ond travel across lakes. Drawing 7 shows the mote substantial Curragh, of coracle, made of wood and animal hides. which in its seagoing form could be used for long sea fri of several days ang \was typical of those used by Cals on both sides of the Ish Sea, Drawings & through 12 depict various bronze and iron Coltic helmets of the La Téne period. Helmets 9. 1. and 12 influenced the Roman Aimy, which created thelt own vetiions of these classic styles. Helmet 10, a horned helmet. wos found in the Thames in Brtain and is thought to be either a porade helmet or one belonging to a religious scuipture. Drawing 13 depicts various broad-bladed spear heads, while the La Tene styie is cleor in the wo swords. Sword 14 was found in Yorkshire and dates trom the 31d contury BC. Sword 15 is also Bish, but It dates trom 60 BC and is accompanied by an elaborate scabbard, Two earlier weapons, going back to the origin of the Celts in central Europe, ore drawing 17, a bronze dagger, and drawing 18, 0 dagger found in Fronee.Celtic Wea, ns and Artifacts ed ‘ix Xe mat Is $0 Interesting about Celtic culture is its very dstinctness. Unlike other onclenf European cultures, which suffered to a greater or lesser extent from being overwhelmed by Mediterranean sives to the south or were simply too primitive 100 survive, Celtic style and decorative elements have survived over 3,000 years, are stl used today and can be clearly identied. ‘whether it be in metalwork. textiles. or graphic design, ‘Drawings 19 through 22 represent Celtic shields, the fist trae being the whole body protectors that later influenced the Romans. Their decorative elements, while noticeably Celtic, also display a symmetry that may suggest they were made in more classically based settiements, Drawing 19s an eatly La Téne shiel¢, while drawing 20 is a middle La Téne shield of the 3id-2nd Centuties BC. Drawing 21 is a Bish shield of the Ist century BC. Drawing 22, the small round shield, is late Gallic from around 60 BC. Drawing 23 shows the typical switing Celtic pattems on the ack of @ bronze mirror found at Desborough. Drawing 24 is a superbly shaped ritual vessel. Drawing 25's the knotted tore, made Cf either gold or ron, worn around the neck by Celtic warriors from Brtain to Turkey. perhaps indicating that the wearer isa freeman, itis sometimes forgotten, in the wake of the Celtic warrior and his achievements, hat the Cells were ako excelent farmers, both Cf animals and plants, I was this folent thot gave them thelr great wealth and power, providing goods for their own survival (as well {a5 a suplus that could be used for trade or storage) ond enabling them fo toke ther great migratory joumeys across Europe. It may be that the chariot itself evolved from their use of the wheel for ploughing the earth or carting the harvest. Certainly it was their Continual clearing of forests and ploughing of land that gives us ‘thelr biggest and most visible achievement, Le., the very shape ‘and form of the landscape today with iis open fields and clusters of frees. Drawings 25 and 27 show two different forms of the two- wheeled chariot that supplanted the fourwheeled battle cart ‘nd is one of the Indicators of Lo Tene culture. Drawing 26 is a reconstruction of a British chatiot, while drawing 27 is that of one found in northern italy. Drawing 28 & a decorated bronze bit showing the extent fo which the Celts loved fo lavish their Craftsmanship on thelr horses. Drawings 29 portray various forms of Batish Celtic pottery. while drawings 80 show various metal too Used for clearing forests and harvesting crops. Drawing 31 shows the kind of plough used over centuries fo shape the landscape of the Celts, Never lacking in industry or enterprise, the Cettic spit survives today in so mony moder forms, from business to ‘ogicutue, trom Iterature to pop musi.